To the editor:

I believe that Earth Day should not be just a big spring weekend cleanup, fantastic as it is. I'm not against organizing people to make an effort on that day to pick up as much litter as they can — I applaud it. However, I want to see the energy and commitment of Earth Day extended across the entire year — and I have an idea that can make that happen.

Two years ago I was walking to Hope Street from the Thames Street parking lot. The lovely backyard of the library was bestrewn with litter, and it angered me. The next day I made the same walk and had the same reaction. By the third day, I figured it out: The litter that was offending me was still there because no one had picked it up. I was waiting for someone else — maybe the littering parties themselves — to show up and pick up their trash. I finally figured out that they weren't going to do that, but I could.

Although I may not be responsible for causing litter, I can be responsible for getting rid of it. In a time where "responsibility" is often used as a word of inconvenience, the statements, "not my problem," or "I don't care" have become easy ways around claiming responsibility. I'd like to propose a theme that will de-stigmatize the word and also lead to a cleaner Bristol: Responsibility is something you can pick up.

The theme is two-sided: Picking up litter is a responsible act, and learning responsibility from a role model is possible. The two sides get along perfectly with my solution to the litter problem. Showing responsibility will often inspire responsibility. If those who litter can be considered irresponsible to the environment, those who pick up litter can claim the desirable adjective. "Responsible." I firmly believe that there are more responsible than irresponsible people walking around Bristol. If the responsible citizens take action, the battle against litter can be won.

My suggestion is almost too simple to seem valid, but here it is: Every day, pick up one piece of litter you have not produced yourself, and put it in a trash barrel. All you need to pick up is one piece a day. If enough responsible people do that, I venture that a significant, positive difference in the litter problem will be apparent — all year long.

I have been practicing this strategy for a couple of years, and it always makes me feel good knowing I've done something, however small, to combat the litter problem. Occasionally, people ask me what I'm doing. I tell them and I encourage them to do the same. Most laugh at me, but the theory is solid. Picking up one piece of litter, every day, contributes to a good cause. If everyone picked up one piece of litter a day, it could eventually get tough to even find a piece of litter in Bristol. That's a utopian goal, but with the responsible majority of Bristol residents making this tiny gesture, that goal is more achievable than it may sound.

I am aware that there are Bristol residents who make it their business to pick up litter in great quantity, and often. These people are heroes of the environment and deserve our thanks, if not public recognition. They are models of responsibility. You can be, too, even at the pace of one piece of litter a day.

If you are not willing to pick up someone else's litter — on a day other than Earth day — I won't ask you to. If the idea of picking up one piece of litter a day doesn't make sense to you, it probably never will. However, I would encourage you to mention this idea to your young children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews — they will likely "get it." They tend to understand with marvelous clarity how doing something good for the environment can make them feel good.

They may even like the idea to the point that they will do it for the rest of their lives, to the benefit of Bristol, or wherever else they live. They just might reinforce the truth in the statement that responsibility is something you can pick up.

Steve Brosnihan

39 Usher Terrace